William Cook

Is Sebastian Kurz Germany’s most important politician?

Who is the most important politician in Germany? Angela Merkel? No, it’s the Austrian Chancellor, Sebastian Kurz. Merkel remains a colossus on the world stage, but domestically her power is much diminished. Meanwhile German eyes are on Kurz, the world’s youngest national leader, as he strives to bridge the gulf between centrists and populists – and between east and west.

Despite their vastly differing ages (Merkel is 63; Kurz is just 31), the German and Austrian Chancellors actually have quite a lot in common. They’re both leaders of centre right parties in prosperous Central European nations, where immigration is a growing concern, and the far right is on the rise. They both won pyrrhic victories in last year’s elections – each ending up as the leader of the largest party, each with insufficient votes or seats to govern alone.

However their reactions to this common problem could hardly be less alike. In Germany, Merkel has formed yet another so-called ‘grand coalition’ with the Social Democrats, keeping Germany’s hard right party, Alternative für Deutschland, out of office. In Austria, Kurz has shunned the Social Democrats and formed a coalition government with the hard right Freedom Party.

Kurz hopes the responsibilities of government will tame the Freedom Party. If he succeeds, this will have profound implications for Germany. It will show Christian Democrats they must build bridges with Germany’s populist right. And it will show that Merkel’s centrist strategy has surely had its day.

So far, Kurz’s gamble seems to be paying off. His centre right People’s Party has toughened up on immigration, while the hard right Freedom Party has confirmed its support for the EU. During last year’s election campaign, Freedom Party leader Heinz-Christian Strache called Kurz ‘an imposter’ on account of Kurz’s dramatic shift (some might say lurch) to the right.

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